Further North across Hadrian's Wall and on to Edinburgh

Further North

Mon.9^th Sept :  A lovely sunny morning, though with a chill in the air early on.  We went for a stroll down the high street in Kirmington before heading off to Thornton Abbey, which has an enormous and ornate fortified gatehouse, the largest of all English monastic gatehouses.  Unfortunately, we didn’t read all the details re opening times and found on our arrival that in September, it is only open from Fridays to Sundays.  So…we could see and photograph the gatehouse,

but weren’t able to explore the Abbey ruins…however, there was a picnic spot next to the car park, the sun was shining so we put the kettle on, made coffee and had ourselves a little picnic.

The next stop was Skipsea to see the ‘impressive’ earthwork remains of a big Norman motte and bailey castle, dating from the 1070s, but this was a disappointment as all we could see was a field with mounds of earth which may have been of some interest had we ventured further into the field and managed to dodge the countless cow pats and the cows responsible!  Mike had already stepped in some doggy do which necessitated a major clean up and deodorising in the van!

On then to Scarborough, with a brief stop at the Bempton Cliffs along the way.

By this time, the sun had disappeared from view to be replaced by grey sky and drizzle.  What was a lovely scenic drive was marred a little by the now steady rain but by the time we reached Scarborough, the rain had ceased and the sun had reappeared, though the stiff breeze coming off the water kept the temperature down so jumpers were needed.  There was no disappointment with Scarborough Castle which defends a prominent headland between two bays and offers panoramic views.

We stayed the night in a caravan park on the outskirts of Scarborough, cycled from there to nearby Burniston for a delicious pub meal and returned to camp just before the rain began again.

Tues.10^th Sept : Today was a day of the long drive…heading west along the border of the North York Moors and although it was raining for much of the time, we could still admire and appreciate the stunning scenery.   After negotiating the traffic on the ring road around Middlesborough, we headed north and a little bit west to our camp site at Acomb, near Hexham.  There we spent a quiet night in the woods, not too far from Hadrian’s Wall.

Wed.11^th Sept :  It was a short drive to our first port of call, Chesters Roman Fort and Museum, set in the beautiful valley of the River North Tyne and the best preserved example of a Roman cavalry fort in Britain.  It was one of the series of permanent forts added during the construction of Hadrian’s Wall.  There is so much to see and we happily wandered through the drizzle and the wet grass, totally amazed by the ingenuity of the Romans of almost two centuries ago.

The next was to the Birdoswald Roman Fort which is one of the best places to gain an overview of Hadrian’s Wall at one single site with a Roman fort, turret and milecastle while nearby is the longest continuous stretch of the Wall still visible today.

About five miles down the narrow road is Lanercost Priory, the best preserved of Cumbrian monasteries and our last visit for the day.  After an interesting roam around the impressive monastery ruins and the simple but lovely church,

we began another long drive,  crossing the Scottish border after 6 miles on the motorway which although quick, was ever so slightly boring but from Junction 13 at Abingdon,  we followed the very scenic Clyde Valley Tourist Route so we had our happy faces on by the time we reached our camp site, about 8 miles out of Edinburgh.  It was a long but most enjoyable day.

Thurs.12^th Sept :  A crisp, cool morning.  We set off just after 9am to the nearby bus stop to catch the bus which would take us into Edinburgh.  This journey took about 35 – 40 minutes as the bus stops are only a short distance apart, the streets are narrow and the driver has to negotiate his way through parked cars, stop at numerous traffic lights, pedestrian crossings etc. but we got there!  We went first to the Royal Yacht Brittania at the Ocean Terminal and spent a couple of hours there, including having a light lunch in the tea rooms on board. 

The ship is open to the public, hand held audio devices are supplied and photos are permitted, many of the Royal Family’s personal possessions are on display…it is just awesome.

Returning to the city, we made our way up the Royal Mile to Edinburgh Castle.  It too is totally awesome and we spent most of the afternoon there. 

Towards the end of our fabulous day and by which time all other attractions were closed, we headed back down the hill towards Princes Street to catch the bus ‘home’, stopping at Boots’ to make a small purchase.  On opening my purse to pay for said purchase, I discovered to my horror that there was no money inside…some thieving b…..d had stolen it!  How he/she/they did it I cannot fathom.   Those who know me well know how careful I am with my belongings, I know the cash was there when I made a purchase shortly after leaving the castle, I am absolutely certain I didn’t leave my bag open (I always make sure it’s closed even when I’m at home so the contents won’t fall out if moved),  yet somehow the purse was taken out, emptied and put back without my being aware of it.  It’s very strange, mystifying, I keep asking myself why did he/she/they bother putting the purse back and why did they leave the cards??    Well, I guess the cards are difficult to pull out of their slots in a hurry by why not take the purse and dispose of it later?  It was raining, I was wearing my rain jacket and hood, we stopped twice on the way down at traffic lights which is the only time it could have happened, I think…I’ll never know.   I’m not happy!